Car-coupling



No. 620,300. Patented Feb. l28, |899. J. A. GRAHAM, J. A. MCGEE & F. H. STARK.

v CAR' CUUPLING.

(Application lsd May 7, 1898. (No Model.)

JAMES A. GRAHAM AND JAMES A. MoeEE, O'E LoEAiN, AND FRANK n.

' STARK, OE ELYRIA, OHIO. I

CAR-COUPLNG.

SPECIFICATON forming part of Letters Patent No. 620,300, dated February 28, 1899.

Application tiled May 7,1898. Serial No. 680,037. (No model.) l

To @ZZ whom t may concern:

Beit known that we, .iAMEs A. GRAHAM and JAMES A. MOGEE, of Lorain, and FRANK H. STARK, of Elyria, in the countyof Lorain and State of Ohio, citizens of the=United States, have invented new and useful Improvements in Car-Couplings, of which the followingis a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in automatic car-couplers of the Master Car- Builders type, in which a pivoted or hinged knuckle is employed in conjunction with a pivoted locking-bar to engage the arm or tail of the knuckle, and it contemplates the .provision of a lock or rest for the bar to be tripped by the arm of the knucklmtso that said locking-bar may be held from and also thrown into engagement with the knuckle when desired, thereby insuring a proper coup ling by impact and avoiding thenecessityof securing or adjusting the usuai pin-Operating shaft and the employment ci short connecti'ons between said shaft and pin, all of which result in the saving of labor and avoidance of danger and loss of ii'e.

With the foregoing ends in view the invention. will be fullyunderstood from the following description and ciaim. when taken inl connection with the annexed drawings, yin which'- Figure l is a horizontal longitudinal sectional' view or" a draw-h ead with our improven ments applied and showing the knuckle'in 'a locked position. Fig. 2 is a sectional View taken in a plane at right angles to Fig. 1 and cn the iine indicated by fr :c on said figure. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional View taken in the plane indicated bythe dotted line y y on Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a sectional detail view. Fig. '5 is a perspective View of the movable jaw or knuckle removed, and Fig. 6 is a perspective View of the improved lock or prop removed.

ln illustrating our invention we have shown a draw-head of the Master Car-Builders or Tannoy type, having a fixed jaw a and a hinge l or pivoted jaw b, commonly termed a knuckle. In this type of couplerthe neck or shank c is provided at a suitable point in its floor or bottom with a longitudinal vertical slot d, through which the inner downwardly-curved end e of a locking-bar f is passed and secured in position by across pin or key g. This locking-bar isprovided near its inner'end with lateral lugs h, which rest in suitable curved bearings t', and said bar is provided on its forward upper side with a slot-j, which opens into a forwardly-directed slot 7o of less width to receive a T-head l on the lower end of a pin A. The draw-head is also provided with the usual vertically-disposed pin-aperture fm and the locking-.bar

with alaterally-disposed lug or arm n to con.

tact with one of the side walls of the shank and prevent undue lateral movement of said locking-bar during operation.

The knuckle b, which is mainly of 'the ordinary construction, has the inner end of its tail or arm inclined toward its free end and also laterally, as shown at p, to engage the beveled forward end q of the looking-bar and also to engage our improved lock or prop for said bar, as will be hereinafter more fully described. The arm of the knuckle is Shoaldered, as shown at r, to engagewith an' abutment s in thedraw-head, as better shown in Fig. l of the drawings.

The pin A is designed to be connected by means of a chain or the like with the operat ing-shaft usually journaled to the -front wall or other suitable part of a car, so that said pin, and consequently the locking-bar, may be raised by the manipulation of said shaft and connection. i. A

ln couplers'of this character, and which are the most desirable type, it has been found necessary to lock the operating-shaft in uncounlin g and to employ labor to disen gage the shaft, so 'as to place the coupler in a positionl to act automatically, and it has also Abeen found necessary to so adjust the connection between the operating-shaft and the pin and itslocking-bar that no slack may accumulate in the attachments. vWith a View o f meetingthese requirements and permitting the use of longconnectionsbetween the operating-shaft and knuckle-lock we provide a lock or prop for said locking-bar.v Thislock or prop operates by gravity in taking beneath the'locking-bar when elevated and allows said -of the knuckle,

bar to drop into a locked position when the prop has been engaged by the tail or armof the knuckle. It is of a substantially V form in vertical section, with its reduced end lowermost, having a fiat outer side C and its inner side shouldered at a suitable point from its top, as at D, and this shoulderA is preferably .pitched toward one end, as shown, so as to conform to the bevel or curvature on the forward under side of the locking-bar. The outer side of this lock or prop is designed to contact with the adjacent inner side wall of the draw-head when in a, vertical position and whenthe coupler is Vin a locked position as 'well as when the `knuckle has been swung-on The lock or prop isarranged-to one its pivot. side of the locking bar, anda chamber E is usually provided in the draw-head to receive said lock or prop. The locking-bar D when in .its lower operative position rests at the side of the lock or prop and ,serves to hold the same in the chamber When, however, the locking-bar is raised, the lock or prop will, by reason of its upper portion bein r larger and heavier than its lower portion, immediately assume a position below the locking-bar, as shown in Fig. Making the upper portion of the lock or prop heavy, as described, rendersl it reliable in operation and also increases its strength and enables it to withstand the shock and jar to which couplers are ordinarily subjected. The lower reduced end of the `lock or prop is in some eases provided with a longitudinal hole F to receive apin or rod G, which may be threaded, as shown at II, and the draw-headmay have a screwtapped aperture to receive the threaded portionof the pin or rod, while in other cases the aperture and pin may be dispensed with, and this reduced and preferably rounded lower end J may be placed in a recess K in the bottom of the draw-head, as better shown in Fig. 3 of thedrawings. It is both desirable and preferable to employ the threaded rod, so as to avoid any possibility of the prop or lock leaving its seat by jerking or jarring movements.

The

tension prop or lock may have a forward ex- L, so asto lie in the path of the arm knuckle has been swung on its pivotduring the action of uncoupling it will trip the lock or prop and release the lock-bar therefrom,

- DESSGS.

as by this means when the so that the latter will fau upon the Hoor of the draw-head to be operated upon by the From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the annexed drawings, the operation and advantages of our invention will be obvious. When it is desirable to either` uncouplea car or'set the same for uncoupling, it is simply necessary to raise the locking-bar by the operating-shaft and its connection until said locking-bar has rested upon the shoulder ofthe lock or prop. As the knuckle is swung outwardly on its' pivot in uncoupling it will V,strike and trip the prop, which will cause the locking-bar to descend into a position to be struck by the arm of the knuckle in coupling, which may take place-by-impact. The extent of the bevel or incline on the knuckle-arm and the height of the shoulder on the prop should be such. that the engagement of said arm with the locking-barwill not lift it to the 4height of the shoulder on theprop.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is- In the car-coupling described, the combination of the draw-head having the chamber E at one side, the knuckle pivted in the drawhead and having the tail provided with the inclined end p, the longitudinally-disposed, vertically-movable locking-bar journaled adjacent to its rear end in the draw-head and having the beveled p end, and the vgravitatimg, laterally-movable prop arranged in the chamber E of the drawhead at one side of the'plane of movement of the locking-bar and j ournaled at its lower end in said draw-head so as to move at right angles tothe locking-bar; the said prophaving the enlarged andheavy portion with the shoulderD at the inner side thereof, and also having the forward extension L forthe engagement of the tail of the knuckle, substantially as specified.

In testimouywhereof welhave hereuntoset our hands in presence of two subscribing wit- JAMES A. GRAHAM. JAMES A. MCGEE. FRANK H. STARK. Witnesses:

W. P. LANIERS,

A. T. PLATr.

portion q at its forward 

